SALARY CAP dept. : ~ ~ Free Falling ~ ~

[kelly]

While the Giants are already busy taking a chainsaw to their roster, the Jets and new GM John Idzik have been conspicuously quiet.

That silence doesn’t figure to last much longer.

Gang Green is nearly $20 million over the NFL’s projected $121.1 million salary cap for 2013, meaning Idzik has plenty to do and relatively not much time to do it before free agency kicks off March 12 with the start of the official league calendar.

Actually, getting under the cap will be bloody but simple for Idzik, a cap expert who merely needs to cut outside linebacker Calvin Pace, inside linebacker Bart Scott, offensive tackle Jason Smith and safety Eric Smith to save a whopping $30.8 million in cap room.But while that might create a healthy bit of space under the cap, it likely won’t be enough for them to give cornerback Darrelle Revis the big-money deal he’s seeking or safety LaRon Landry, who was a key contributor to a defense whose productiveness last year was overshadowed by the woes on offense and a 6-10 finish.And all those cuts also will leave Idzik and coach Rex Ryan with a vastly depleted lineup, featuring just 10 starters still under contract — including a quarterback in Mark Sanchez who is set to receive $8.25 million will be challenged to retain his starting job.

While David Harris, Santonio Holmes, D’Brickawshaw Ferguson and Antonio Cromartie make big money, cutting them would not help because of the salary-cap hit the Jets would take. It is possible they could restructure their deals.Then there is the matter of Tim Tebow, who is certain to depart but whose immediate future is still cloudy. That’s because the Jets reportedly plan to see if they can trade him instead of cut him,even though the only team thought to have any interest dealing for Tebow — the Jaguars — recently ruled themselves out of acquiring him at all.The Jets won’t have any trouble finding trade partners for Revis, and swinging a deal for the perennial All-Pro cover man could end up being the team’s initial priority once they get under the cap.

The Jets won’t save any money by trading Revis, but they would save themselves the headache of further contract drama as well as avoid the embarrassment of letting him walk away — perhaps to a division rival like the Patriots — next winter. They also could load up on picks in the April draft, which will be key to Idzik’s turnaround effort.As for free agency, the Jets will almost certainly be bargain hunters, even when it comes to the veteran quarterback necessary to compete with Sanchez. That means it will be extremely difficult to land Alex Smith and they likely will have to settle for someone like Tarvaris Jackson or Matt Moore, although Idzik comes from Seattle and is thought to like expendable backup Matt Flynn.

None of that comes as a surprise to the Jets, of course.

Old boss Mike Tannenbaum left a big hole for Idzik to dig out of, and the new boss is just getting started.

bhubbuch@nypost.com

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[kelly]

NY Jets ready to cut linebackers Bart Scott and Calvin Pace in effort to get under salary cap

Tackle Jason Smith, also expected to be cut, would save the team $12 million meaning the three combined cuts would reduce the Jets cap number by $27.7 million.

The Jets, it seems, can’t wait to say goodbye to

Bart Scott.

Gang Green's plan is to cut two mainstays of their linebacking core, Scott and Calvin Pace, in the coming weeks, sources said. Pace and Scott, who have been with the team since 2008 and 2009 respectively, will represent significant savings for the Jets once the they are cut.Pace, who is in the final year of his contract, would represent $8.6 million in cap savings if let go; Scott would save $7.2 million.Tackle Jason Smith,also expected to be cut, would save the team $12 million meaning the three combined would reduce the Jets cap number by $27.7 million, bringing them under the expected 2013 cap of $121.1 million. In addition, the Jets will carry over $3.4 million of unused cap space from the 2012 season on top of the expected $121.1 figure.Much has been made of the Jets’ difficult salary cap situation; the damage left by former GM Mike Tannenbaum undoubtedly put them in a poor situation but not an impossible one — these expected cuts would alleviate much of the cap pressure new GM John Idzik faces.

Though the team plans to cut Pace, Scott and Smith, a 2013 season wearing Jet green remains a possibility for them. While the best deal on the open market would likely be elsewhere, the Jets could move to maintain any of them at a reduced rate.For Scott and Pace, however, this will probably be the end of their Jets careers and would change, for the first time under Rex Ryan, the linebacking core of Scott, Pace, David Harris and Bryan Thomas. That group of linebackers has been at the heart of the Ryan defense, which brought the Jets to two AFC Championship games but could not keep up that level of performance last season.Scott is perhaps remembered by Jets fans for his fiery personality more than anything else. The inside linebacker personified the Jets playoff run following the 2010 season with his "can't wait" speech on national television following a playoff victory over the Patriots, but also had his fair share of gaffes too: he flipped off photographers following the 2011 season and threatened a reporter last year. Scott averaged 54 tackles per year in his four seasons with the Jets.Though they are both 32, Scott is entering the twilight of his career while Pace is still a useful commodity — just not at his current price tag.For Pace,there will likely be other suitors willing to offer more than the Jets who are strapped tight thanks to their cap situation.

The changing of the guard at linebacker means 2012 third-round pick DeMario Davis will replace Scott, pairing up with Harris at inside linebacker.

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